Author: roymorgansocial

Companies fight for access to JobKeeper wage scheme

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Original article by Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 32 : 23-Apr-20

Many companies in the property sector meet the turnover reduction thresholds for the JobKeeper scheme, but their corporate restructure means they may be ineligible. Such companies are split into an operating arm that generates income and a services arm that actually employs their staff, but the turnover test will be applied to each entity separately. These structures are widely used by companies such as retail property managers and student accommodation providers. Operators of retirement villages may also be ineligible for the scheme.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, PROPERTY COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, LENDLEASE GROUP – ASX LLC, STOCKLAND – ASX SGP, MERITON APARTMENTS PTY LTD

Company tax rate back on table

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 23-Apr-20

Deregulation, tax reform and changes to the industrial relations system are expected to be the federal government’s priorities when the coronavirus pandemic abates. The Coalition is of the view that the economy will need reforms of a similar magnitude to those implemented by the Hawke-Keating Labor government three decades ago. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg notes that Australia’s company tax rate remains high by global standards, although he has ruled out any changes to the GST at present. The government has also signalled its intention to revive the Ensuring Integrity Bill.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

ASX equities to be hit by forced selling as workers grab super

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Original article by Melissa Yeo
The Australian – Page: 20 : 23-Apr-20

Matthew Ross of Goldman Sachs estimates that up to $44bn could be withdrawn from superannuation funds by people who have been financially hit by the pandemic, compared with the federal government’s forecast of $27bn. The early access scheme may result in liquidity issues for some super funds, which could in turn be forced to reduce their exposure to shares. Ross says this could potentially reduce the benchmark S&P/ASX 200’s market ­capitalisation by around 0.45 per cent.

CORPORATES
GOLDMAN SACHS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX

Buyers queue, Virgin could sell in two months

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Original article by Robyn Ironside
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 22-Apr-20

Virgin Australia CEO Paul Scurrah says the embattled airline is not expecting to receive a federal government bail-out following its descent into voluntary administration. He adds that the government has rejected nine requests from Virgin for financial assistance, while Treasurer Josh Frydenberg notes that Virgin is controlled by five large foreign shareholders that have "deep pockets". Vaughan Strawbridge of Deloitte, who has been appointed as administrator of Virgin, believes that the carrier could be sold within 2-3 months. More than 10 potential buyers are said to have expressed interest in buying Virgin, including a number of overseas investors.

CORPORATES
VIRGIN AUSTRALIA HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX VAH, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, DELOITTE TOUCHE TOHMATSU LIMITED

Inflation expectations down significantly in mid-April

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 22-Apr-20

In mid-April there was a jolt to Australian Inflation Expectations, with a steep fall in the weekly index on April 18/19 to a record low of only 3.1%, down from 3.8% the week before and significantly below the 2020 weekly average of 4%. The weekly fall was caused by fewer Australians expecting prices to increase over the next two years, down to 69.4% (down 1.4% on a week ago) and more expecting prices to either decrease (up 1% to 10.8%) or ‘Stay the same’ (up 0.4% to 19.8%). Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine says the steep drop in Inflation Expectations in mid-April comes as the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic begins to hit key pricing metrics in the economy.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Tax reform cure for virus fever

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Original article by Patrick Commins
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 22-Apr-20

Reserve Bank of Australia governor Philip Lowe has warned that the nation’s GDP growth will fall by around six per cent in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, he says the economy should begin to recover in September, with GDP growth of 6-7 per cent expected in 2021. Lowe also says the unemployment rate could peak at 10 per cent in coming months, and it is likely to remain above six per cent for several years. Lowe adds that total hours worked in Australia are forecast to fall by 20 per cent in the first half of 2020. Lowe has also used a speech in Sydney to argue that industrial relations and tax reform should be considered in the wake of the pandemic.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

It’s official: Online sources overtake TV as main source of news – for 59% of Gen Z social media is their main choice of news

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 22-Apr-20

New research from Roy Morgan shows that the internet has overtaken TV as the main place Australians turn for their news. Some 12.7 million Australians (60.6%, up 2.8ppts since mid-2018) now use the internet for news. This includes social media (37.6%); news or newspaper websites or apps (29.2%) and news feed sites (16.3%). TV is now used by 12.4 million Australians (59.5%) as their main source of news, down more than 6ppts from 65.6% in June 2018. This comprises free-to-air TV (56.4%, down 5.9ppts) and Pay TV (8.3%). Meanwhile, around 80% of Baby Boomers and Pre-Boomers say free-to-air TV is a main source of news for them, and nearly two-thirds of Generation X (64%) nominate free-to-air TV as a main news source. However, the popularity of free-to-air TV drops away significantly for younger generations. Only 40% of Millennials and 36% of Generation Z say free-to-air TV is a main source of news. In contrast to the older generations, both Millennials (77%) and Generation Z (74%) are more likely to say the internet is a main source of news, ahead of other forms of media.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

ABC in the frame for tech giant payments

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Original article by Paul Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 22-Apr-20

Australian Competition & Consumer Commission chairman Rod Sims says that all media companies should be included in the revenue-sharing deal with Google and Facebook. This could potentially include the taxpayer-funded ABC, and Sims notes that the media sector will be in a weaker bargaining position if the public broadcaster is not involved. Meanwhile, the Victorian government will support regional journalism by spending $4.7m on advertising with non-metropolitan news outlets over the next six months.

CORPORATES
GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS

Inner city Melbourne, Sydney and Perth are the hot spots for meal delivery services UberEATs, Menulog & HelloFresh

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 22-Apr-20

New Roy Morgan research shows that Inner City Melbourne residents (40%) are the Australians most likely to use meal delivery services, just ahead of those in Central Sydney (39%), followed by Central Perth (31%). Other regions with high use of these services include Northern Melbourne (with suburbs such as Preston, Northcote and Coburg), Middle Southern & Eastern Melbourne (including Hawthorn, Malvern, Sandringham and Brighton) and South-West Perth (including Fremantle and Coogee). The data covers the 12 months to March 2020. Overall, around one in five Australians (19%) now use meal delivery services in an average three months, with the top four services – UberEATS, Menulog, HelloFresh and Deliveroo – all growing their market share over the past year. More than a third of Australians living in shared households, and more than a fifth of single parents and young people living with their parents, now use meal delivery services. In contrast, only a tenth of those who live alone use these services. Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine says that even before the COVID-19 pandemic more Australians than ever before were turning to meal delivery services.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Self-Managed and Public Sector Super Funds increase satisfaction in March, but Industry & Retail both down

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 22-Apr-20

New data from Roy Morgan’s Superannuation Satisfaction Report shows that Self-Managed Funds and Public Sector Funds both increased their satisfaction in March, despite significant market upheaval with the ASX200 falling significantly from its February record high. As a sector, Self-Managed Funds have the highest level of customer satisfaction (75.0%), up 0.3% from February, followed by Public Sector Funds on 74.5% (+0.3%). In contrast, satisfaction with Industry Funds fell by 1.1% in a month to 64.4%, while Retail Funds were down 0.2% to 60%. The report’s findings come from the Roy Morgan Single Source survey, Australia’s most comprehensive and trusted consumer survey.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED